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I don't understand what you mean by that. What form fields? If you're talking about within the browser, I have seen no such thing either on the forums in the entry fields for username/post text/searches/etc. or on other webpages so far.
There is no lag for me switching apps. You pick one app and the screen flips like a 3d card to the other one and so forth with each one. Sure, the double tap takes a second to do, but so did holding the Menu button on the Storm.
Efficiency in the Phone app is also not an issue. I keep the Phone app on the Recent list, so all I do is tap the button to call someone back or scroll through the list to pick someone to call (usual people). This is how I had my Storm setup as well (Call Log as initial screen when pulling up the phone app, NEVER the dial pad). If I need to dial a number directly, one tap on the dial pad button at the bottom brings that up. When a call is initiated, I hit speaker if I need to and the button remains lit (so you visualy know it's on, same for mute if you press it). If I need to dial additional numbers after a pickup, like hitting 0 for opperator, I hit the dial pad button on the same small screen with mute/speaker and the dial pad flips in fast. I hit 0 and then flip back to the other screen. Most of my numbers that require additional entries (like extentions) are already programmed into the saved contact. To dial a contact (one that's not recent), I bring up the Phone app and hit Contacts at the bottom and start typing in the name. It narrows down a match (just like my Storm did) and I tap on it and it dials. I dunno how much more efficient it can get than that.
Email is the same. I can search for a name or subject line within the email box I'm currently in. It matches things as I type and then I can scroll through and find the specific email from that person if more than one showed up in the list.
If I can't remember where something is (broad search) and I'm not on the first home screen pane, two separate clicks of the home button (the first to bring me back to the first pane and the second to bring up the search) brings up the universal search (which can be tailored to search anything from apps/media/email/web/etc. in the settings menu of the phone). If I'm on the main pane of the homescreen, I can click just once on the home button to bring up universal search or I can just swipe from left to right on the icon screen to bring up the search. Multiple swipes from left to right if I'm more than one screen away from the main pane. The swiping or clicking transitions are fast and don't lag at all. The swipes also match the speed of my actual swipes, so if I'm in a hurry and swipe fast, the screens swipe just as quickly, if I swipe slow, they swipe slow, etc.
I dunno what to tell you, I can fly through the interface and I don't have to worry about hourglassing.
In the web browser (while on this site for instance), I usually read it in landscape mode because I can fill the entire width of the screen with text and make it easier to read than in portrait without zooming in and scrolling left/right. If I need to zoom in perfectly to fill the screen with text and be margin justified, I just double-tap on the paragraph that's the right width I want and the page zooms in and fills the screen with the text without me having to pinch-zoom to find the right scale to fit the text to the screen. If I need to enter text in a field, the minute I click in that field, the screen zooms into it and I can clearly see what I'm typing (both landscape or portrait); I normally type in portrait because I did full QWERTY portrait on the Storm. Rotating the screen rescales the zoom/view properly if needed. Once I'm done typing I can hit Done "to collapse the keyboard" (note, that's all that DONE does) or just scroll down to Post or whatever the forum button is I need to press to confirm my entry, Login, etc. If it's the login page, I just hit Enter on the keyboard after I enter my password and I'm logged in. The browser never changes screen or tabs or pages for any of these text entries (if that's what you were talking about above). The page just zooms in a bit so you can see the text fields better, there is nothing keeping me from pinch-zooming back out if needed and panning around or zooming more in, it's all the same page.
Playing games... I was playing a game today (Dungeon Hunter 2, I'm a sucker for RPGs like that) and I got several texts in. The text box would appear in the foreground in a small dark blue popup window and my game would be dark-screen paused in the background... I could hit close or reply on the text box popup. If I hit close, the box would go away and my game would continue on without any hickups. If I hit reply, my screen flips like a 3d card and up comes the SMS app. I type in my stuff, hit send, double-tap home (to bring up the multitasking tray) and pick the game icon which was the left most icon and I'd be flipped back to the game without a hitch and knowing full well that nothing had killed me while I was SMSing with someone about some silly subject matter.... that is until another text would come in and stop my action yet again, lol. (damnit people, leave me be! haha) The process was a smooth one as is with other apps.
Anyway, sorry for the long post, and many runons, but I wanted to explain how everything works for me. I guess for me it works as expected and I haven't found something that I couldn't do the same way as on my Storm. Just recently I turned my autocorrect and spell check back on and I now no longer have to type in apostrophes for words, I can just continue typing like I did on the Storm and it'll put them in as needed. If I type stuff like I'll, I just need to make sure the I is caps and than if I type in Ill, it'll correct it to I'll. If I type in ill (non caps on the I), it'll leave it as ill (as in sick).
In the end it is what it is... smooth. You just have to know how to use the system. When I had a Storm there were a lot of people who didn't know how to set their phones up for quick efficiency (especially the phone app initial screen) to fit their need more. Almost everyone I saw with a Storm always had it on the dial pad. That's too damn slow, by default it should be on the Call Log view because that's where you can dial from quicker if you always dial from history to deal with callbacks and such. I think the biggest issue with people thinking a system isn't as quick as their previous phone is because they don't take the small amount of time to actually configure their settings properly, they just all go with default crap and then complain that it's not fast enough. Well isht, if you think it takes you too long to flip 3 icon pages to get to your one app you use so much, move the damn icon to the first page or something... this is just a basic example, but people do stupid stuff like that and wonder why I roll my eyes all the time when I think they're working harder than they should to use a smartphone.
So, there it is... I hope you guys enjoy my non-truncated wall of text.
02-20-11 01:00 AM - Please tell me you typed this on your iPhone
Okay, I meant, for example, a calendar event entry. Every field I want to fill in, I tap on, and slide into a dedicated screen just for that little field. Then hit Done, and slide back again to the main screen. And other field, slide, type, Done, slide back, and so on.
On the BB calendar entry screen, all entries are in place, on one screen. There is no sliding back and forth for every field. Sure, it looks cluttered, but it's efficient for those who are used to it.
That's my main gripe, really. I did look very closely at those functions, and I was pleasantly surprised by the little details, like the ability to toggle between two apps because the last icon is always fixed in the left corner, as well the pretty quick access to universal search.
Animated transitions. Those are often used to conceal background operations during which the device isn't responsive. It's a well known design trick, but Apple's transitions are so smooth that users generally don't feel like they are waiting. Actually I noticed that the Storm transitions don't include the subtle cross-fade as the iPhone, and that's what makes them look crude. And I'm glad the 9700 simply has none.
Notification lights. I'm ambivalent about them because unless I configure each new contact, it's a distraction. Every little offer from Groupon or some mailing list I forgot I'm on, blinking light. Maybe Apple has been keeping this out until they figure out how to do it right.
But, finer points aside, you do use it for work and if you really don't feel like you're being slowed down, that's the important thing.02-20-11 01:41 AM
